I found this important bit of news in the latest weekly e-newsletter of the Center for Biological Diversity. Do you like wolves? Read this and do what you can to help them. Thanks for caring. /Gary

Center for Biological Diversity e-newsletter N0. 550, Feb. 3, 2011:Southwest wolf attack stalls, but ALL U.S. wolves are in danger — Take Action!

“In a victory — however temporary — for the Southwest’s most endangered wild canine, ranchers and counties on Feb. 1 withdrew from a lawsuit meant to get Mexican gray wolves out of New Mexico. The suit asked the federal government to remove endangered Mexican wolves from the wild because of a few cattle depredations — even though the most recent count finds that only 52 Mexican gray wolves and just two breeding pairs survive in the United States.

Wolf by Dave Harper, Oakley, CA

“The withdrawn lawsuit (in which the Center for Biological Diversity and allies defended the wolves) was the third unsuccessful suit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service aimed at undermining the Mexican wolf recovery program. Unfortunately, it won’t be the last: The anti-wolf plaintiffs can refile a similar suit anytime.

“Meanwhile, several anti-wolf bills have been introduced in Congress to strip safeguards from gray wolf populations across the country. One of them would not only facilitate wolf slaughter but actually leave in place no obstacle to the killing of every single U.S. gray wolf. And this bill, by allowing Congress to legislatively remove gray wolves’ protections, would set a dangerous precedent for future congressional meddling with endangered species’ protections — attacking the very core of the Endangered Species Act.”